Holden Boss Leaves Post At Crucial Time For Aussie Brand

Holden boss Mike Devereux is stepping down from the top role at General Motors’ Australian subsidiary to take on a more international role. Devereux has been promoted to the role of vice president of International Operations at General Motors Company [NYSE:GM], where he will report to the international unit’s recently appointed chief, former Volvo CEO Stefan Jacoby.

The international unit is responsible for operations in more than 100 countries and territories in Africa, Asia Pacific, Europe and the Middle East, including Australia. Major markets such as Europe, China and the Americas have their own units. The news comes just a week after it was revealed that GM was integrating its Russian operations with its European unit and creating a standalone unit for the Chinese market.

Devereux, who led Holden for the past three years, will start his new role in November, though will overlook Holden’s operations until a successor can be found. He leaves Holden at a crucial time: Holden is in the process of negotiating financial assistance from the Australian government to secure its future down under.

Holden has said it is committed to manufacturing cars based on two global platforms in Australia until at least 2022, though the commitment is dependent on market conditions and the level of assistance from the Australian government. Holden currently manufactures the Cruze and Commodore/SS models.

Though today’s announcement has raised concerns that Holden is preparing to wind up its manufacturing operations in Australia, similar to what Ford announced back in May, the company has stated it plans to continue ongoing discussions with the government.

Several other Holden bosses have been quickly promoted to more senior roles within GM in the recent past. Devereux replaced Alan Batey, who now heads Chevrolet globally, and prior to him was Mark Reuss, who now heads GM North America and is tipped as a potential successor to GM CEO Dan Akerson.